Editing Early modern human (section)

== Anatomy ==
{{see also|Human anatomy|Human physical appearance|Anthropometry}}
[[File:Anatomically Modern Humans archaeological remains, Europe and Africa, directly dated, calibrated carbon dates as of 2013.jpg|thumb|Known archaeological remains of anatomically modern humans in Europe and Africa, directly dated, calibrated carbon dates as of 2013.<ref name=":1"/>]]
Generally, modern humans are more lightly built (or more "gracile") than the more "robust" [[archaic humans]]. Nevertheless, contemporary humans exhibit high [[Human physical appearance#Physiological differences|variability in many physiological traits]], and may exhibit remarkable "robustness". There are still a number of physiological details which can be taken as reliably differentiating the physiology of [[Neanderthals]] vs. anatomically modern humans.

=== Anatomical modernity ===
The term "anatomically modern humans" (AMH) is used with varying scope depending on context, to distinguish "anatomically modern" ''Homo sapiens'' from [[archaic humans]] such as Neanderthals and Middle and [[Lower Paleolithic]] hominins with transitional features intermediate between ''H. erectus'', Neanderthals and early AMH called ''archaic Homo sapiens''.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1OU-DgAAQBAJ&pg=PA358 |title=Processes in Human Evolution: The Journey from Early Hominins to Neanderthals and Modern Humans |isbn=978-0198739906 |last1=Ayala |first1=Francisco José |last2=Conde |first2=Camilo José Cela |year=2017 |publisher=Oxford University Press |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref> In a convention popular in the 1990s, Neanderthals were classified as a [[human subspecies|subspecies]] of ''H. sapiens'', as ''H. s. neanderthalensis'', while AMH (or [[European early modern humans]], EEMH) was taken to refer to "[[Cro-Magnon]]" or ''H. s. sapiens''. Under this nomenclature (Neanderthals considered ''H. sapiens''), the term "anatomically modern ''Homo sapiens''" (AMHS) has also been used to refer to EEMH ("Cro-Magnons").<ref>{{cite book |last=Schopf |first=J. William |title=Major Events in the History of Life|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=py01HMuAIh4C&pg=PA168 |year=1992 |publisher=Jones & Bartlett Learning |isbn=978-0867202687 |pages=168– |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref> It has since become more common to designate Neanderthals as a separate species, ''H. neanderthalensis'', so that AMH in the European context refers to ''H. sapiens'', but the question is by no means resolved.{{refn|group=note|This is a question of conventional terminology, not one of a factual disagreement. Pääbo (2014) frames this as a debate that is unresolvable in principle, "since there is no definition of species perfectly describing the case."<ref>{{cite book |last=Pääbo |first=Svante |author-link=Svante Pääbo |title=Neanderthal Man: In Search of Lost Genomes |publisher=[[Basic Books]] |location=New York |year=2014 |page=237}}</ref>}}

In this more narrow definition of ''H. sapiens'', the subspecies ''[[Homo sapiens idaltu]]'', discovered in 2003, also falls under the umbrella of "anatomically modern".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2003/06/11_idaltu.shtml |first=Robert |last=Sanders |publisher=UC Berkeley News |title=160,000-year-old fossilized skulls uncovered in Ethiopia are oldest anatomically modern humans |date=11 June 2003 |access-date=2019-05-07}}</ref> The recognition of ''H. sapiens idaltu'' as a [[human subspecies|valid subspecies]] of the anatomically modern human lineage would justify the description of contemporary humans with the subspecies name ''Homo sapiens sapiens''.<ref name="White03">{{Cite journal |last1=White |first1=Tim D. |author-link=Tim White (anthropologist) |last2=Asfaw |first2=B. |last3=DeGusta |first3=D. |last4=Gilbert |first4=H. |last5=Richards |first5=G. D. |last6=Suwa |first6=G. |last7=Howell |first7=F. C. |year=2003 |title=Pleistocene ''Homo sapiens'' from Middle Awash, Ethiopia |journal=[[Nature (journal)|Nature]] |volume=423 |issue=6491 |pages=742–747 |bibcode=2003Natur.423..742W |doi=10.1038/nature01669 |pmid=12802332 |s2cid=4432091}}</ref> However, biological anthropologist [[Chris Stringer]] does not consider ''idaltu'' distinct enough within ''H. sapiens'' to warrant its own subspecies designation.<ref>{{Cite journal |title= Human evolution: Out of Ethiopia |journal=[[Nature (journal)|Nature]] |volume=423 |issue=6941 |pages=693–695 |date=12 June 2003 |bibcode=2003Natur.423..692S |last1= Stringer |first1=Chris |doi=10.1038/423692a |pmid=12802315 |s2cid=26693109}}</ref>{{sfn|Stringer|2016|p=20150237}}

A further division of AMH into "early" or "robust" vs. "post-glacial" or "[[gracile]]" subtypes has since been used for convenience. The emergence of "gracile AMH" is taken to reflect a process towards a smaller and more fine-boned skeleton beginning around 50,000–30,000 years ago.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1073/pnas.0707650104 |title=Recent acceleration of human adaptive evolution |journal=[[Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences]] |volume=104 |issue=52 |pages=20753–20758 |year=2007 |last1=Hawks |first1=J. |last2=Wang |first2=E. T. |last3=Cochran |first3=G. M. |last4=Harpending |first4=H. C. |last5=Moyzis |first5=R. K. |bibcode=2007PNAS..10420753H |pmid=18087044 |pmc=2410101 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

=== Braincase anatomy ===
{{further|Brain size}}
[[File:Sapiens neanderthal comparison en.png|thumb|upright=1.35|Anatomical comparison of skulls of ''H. sapiens'' (left) and ''H. neanderthalensis'' (right)<br />(in [[Cleveland Museum of Natural History]])<br />Features compared are the [[neurocranium|braincase]] shape, [[forehead]], [[browridge]], [[nasal bone|nasal bone projection]], [[cheek bone|cheek bone angulation]], [[chin]] and [[occipital bone|occipital contour]]]]
The cranium lacks a pronounced [[occipital bun]] in the neck, a bulge that anchored considerable neck muscles in Neanderthals. Modern humans, even the earlier ones, generally have a larger fore-brain than the archaic people, so that the brain sits above rather than behind the eyes. This will usually (though not always) give a higher forehead, and reduced [[supraorbital ridge|brow ridge]]. Early modern people and some living people do however have quite pronounced brow ridges, but they differ from those of archaic forms by having both a [[supraorbital foramen]] or notch, forming a groove through the ridge above each eye.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Bhupendra |first=P. |title=Forehead Anatomy|url= https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/834862-overview |website=Medscape references |access-date=2019-05-06|date=April 2019 }}</ref> This splits the ridge into a central part and two distal parts. In current humans, often only the central section of the ridge is preserved (if it is preserved at all). This contrasts with archaic humans, where the brow ridge is pronounced and unbroken.<ref>{{cite web|title=How to ID a modern human?|url= http://www.nhm.ac.uk/about-us/news/2012/may/how-to-id-a-modern-human109960.html |website=News, 2012|publisher=[[Natural History Museum, London]]|access-date=11 December 2013}}</ref>

Modern humans commonly have a steep, even vertical [[forehead]] whereas their predecessors had foreheads that sloped strongly backwards.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Encarta, Human Evolution |url=http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761566394_9/human_evolution.html |encyclopedia= Encarta |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20091029044339/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761566394_9/Human_Evolution.html |archive-date=29 October 2009 |url-status=dead |df=dmy }}</ref> According to [[Desmond Morris]], the vertical forehead in humans plays an important role in human communication through [[eyebrow]] movements and forehead skin wrinkling.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Naked Woman: A Study of the Female Body |chapter=The Brow |chapter-url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Wa9zntiEKeAC&pg=PA22 |first=Desmond |last=Morris |author-link=Desmond Morris |year=2007 |publisher=Macmillan |isbn=978-0312338534}}</ref>

[[Brain size]] in both Neanderthals and AMH is significantly larger on average (but overlapping in range) than brain size in ''H. erectus''. Neanderthal and AMH brain sizes are in the same range, but there are differences in the relative sizes of individual brain areas, with significantly larger visual systems in Neanderthals than in AMH.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Pearce |first1=Eiluned |last2=Stringer |first2=Chris |last3=Dunbar |first3=R. I. M. |date=2013-05-07 |title=New insights into differences in brain organization between Neanderthals and anatomically modern humans|journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences |volume=280 |issue=1758 |page=20130168 |doi=10.1098/rspb.2013.0168 |issn=0962-8452 |pmc=3619466 |pmid=23486442}}</ref>{{refn|group=note|Contemporary human endocranial volume averages at {{cvt|1350|cm3}}, with significant differences between populations, global group means range {{cvt|1085|-|1580|cm3}}.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Smith |first1=C. L. |last2=Beals |first2=K. L. |title=Cultural correlates with cranial capacity |journal=American Anthropologist |date=1990 |volume=92 |pages=193–200 |doi=10.1525/aa.1990.92.1.02a00150|s2cid=162406199 |s2cid-access=free}}</ref> Neanderthal average is close to {{cvt|1450|cm3}} (male average {{cvt|1600|cm3}}, female average {{cvt|1300|cm3}}), with a range extending up to {{cvt|1736|cm3}} ([[Amud 1]]).<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Stringer |first=C |editor-last=Foley |editor-first=R |encyclopedia=Hominid evolution and community ecology |title=Human evolution and biological adaptation in the Pleistocene |year=1984 |publisher=Academic Press |location=New York |isbn=978-0122619205}}</ref>}}

===Jaw anatomy===
Compared to archaic people, anatomically modern humans have smaller, differently shaped teeth.<ref name="Townsend G, Richards L, Hughes T 2003 350–5">{{Cite journal|vauthors=Townsend G, Richards L, Hughes T |title=Molar intercuspal dimensions: genetic input to phenotypic variation |journal=Journal of Dental Research |volume=82 |issue=5 |pages=350–355 |date=May 2003 |pmid=12709500 |doi=10.1177/154405910308200505|s2cid=26123427 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|author=Keith A |title=Problems relating to the Teeth of the Earlier Forms of Prehistoric Man |journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society of Medicine |volume=6 |issue=Odontol Sect |pages=103–124 |year=1913 |pmid=19977113 |pmc=2005996|doi=10.1177/003591571300601018 }}</ref> This results in a smaller, more receded dentary, making the rest of the jaw-line stand out, giving an often quite prominent chin. The central part of the mandible forming the chin carries a triangularly shaped area forming the apex of the chin called the '''[[Chin|mental Trigon]]''', not found in archaic humans.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Tattersall |first1=Jeffrey H |last2=Schwartz |first2=Ian |title=The human fossil record Craniodental Morphology of Genus Homo (Africa and Asia) (vol 2) |date=2003 |publisher=Wiley-Liss |isbn=978-0471319283 |pages=327–328}}</ref> Particularly in living populations, the use of fire and tools requires fewer jaw muscles, giving slender, more gracile jaws. Compared to archaic people, modern humans have smaller, lower faces.

===Body skeleton structure===
The body skeletons of even the earliest and most robustly built modern humans were less robust than those of Neanderthals (and from what little we know from Denisovans), having essentially modern proportions. Particularly regarding the long bones of the limbs, the distal bones (the [[Radius (bone)|radius]]/[[ulna]] and [[tibia]]/[[fibula]]) are nearly the same size or slightly shorter than the proximal bones (the [[humerus]] and [[femur]]). In ancient people, particularly Neanderthals, the distal bones were shorter, usually thought to be an adaptation to cold climate.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Steegmann|first=A. Theodore|author2=Cerny, Frank J.|author3= Holliday, Trenton W.|title=Neandertal cold adaptation: Physiological and energetic factors|journal=American Journal of Human Biology|year=2002|volume=14|issue=5|pages=566–583|doi=10.1002/ajhb.10070|pmid=12203812|s2cid=2437566}}</ref> The same adaptation is found in some modern people living in the polar regions.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Stock|first=J.T.|title=Hunter-gatherer postcranial robusticity relative to patterns of mobility, climatic adaptation, and selection for tissue economy|journal=American Journal of Physical Anthropology|date=October 2006|volume=131|issue=2|pages=194–204|doi=10.1002/ajpa.20398|pmid=16596600}}</ref>

[[Human height|Height]] ranges overlap between Neanderthals and AMH, with Neanderthal averages cited as {{cvt|164|to|168|cm|0}} and {{cvt|152|to|156|cm|0}} for males and females, respectively, which is largely identical to pre-industrial average heights for AMH.{{refn|group=note|"Based on 45 long bones from maximally 14 males and 7 females, Neanderthals' height averages between 164 and 168 (males) resp. 152 to 156 cm (females). This height is indeed 12–14 cm lower than the height of post-WWII Europeans, but compared to Europeans some 20,000 or 100 years ago, it is practically identical or even slightly higher."<ref name="Helmuth1998">{{Cite journal|author=Helmuth H |title=Body height, body mass and surface area of the Neanderthals |journal=Zeitschrift für Morphologie und Anthropologie |volume=82 |issue=1 |pages=1–12 |year=1998 |doi=10.1127/zma/82/1998/1 |doi-broken-date=1 November 2024 |pmid=9850627 }}</ref>}} [[List of average human height worldwide|Contemporary national averages]] range between {{cvt|158|to|184|cm|0}} in males and {{cvt|147|to|172|cm|0}} in females. Neanderthal ranges approximate the contemporary height distribution measured among [[Malay people]], for one.{{refn|group=note|Malay, 20–24 (N{{=}} m:749 f:893, Median{{=}} m:{{Height|cm=166}} f:{{Height|cm=155}}, SD{{=}} m:{{Height|cm=6.46}} f:{{Height|cm=6.04}})<ref>{{cite journal|url= http://www.e-mjm.org/2000/v55n1/Body_Weight.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170224180141/http://www.e-mjm.org/2000/v55n1/Body_Weight.pdf |archive-date=2017-02-24 |url-status=live |title=Distribution of Body Weight, Height and Body Mass Index in a National Sample of Malaysian Adults |pmid=11072496 |volume=55 |issue=1 |date=March 2000 |journal=Med. J. Malaysia |pages=108–128 |vauthors=Lim TO, Ding LM, Zaki M, etal}}</ref>}}